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Hillside Heights
You are a high school student in the town of Hillside Heights, a peaceful little planned community notable only for its incredibly inaccurate name - the elevation varies by maybe three metres at most and the nearest hill-like structure is a half-hour’s drive away. Hillside Heights High’s town pride campaign assures you that there were hills here back when the town was named, but it’s difficult to even imagine. HH is surrounded by cities and tourist attractions significantly larger and more important than itself. For as long as you can remember, city officials have been trying desperately to make it fit in with its neighbours, with little success. The identical rows of everything from flowerboxes to apartment buildings have an almost supernaturally boring aura that immediately assimilates whatever shiny new buildings or attractions the officials introduce. The path of destruction carved by that unknown beast and the occasional tourists hovering by it, snapping pictures and discussing its meaning in hushed voices, are the only exceptions to the sleepy atmosphere. There’s no official map of Hillside Heights, and any RPer is welcome to describe new locations in it, within reason. Locations * Hillside Heights High: the one and only high school in the area, “Triple H” as most people call it is a drab two-story building with identical classrooms only distinguishable from each other by the number on the door and the teachers’ liberal application of motivational posters to the walls. Window seats are highly prized and occasionally used as a currency between students. * The empty lots: a series of building lots near the centre of town surrounded by fencing and KEEP OUT signs, supposedly reserved for an outlet mall that will attract many more visitors to the town once it’s built. The problem is, it’s been “coming soon” for as long as anyone can remember. It’s a popular hangout spot for less rule-abiding teenagers, to the silent disapproval of most responsible adults. * Library: although the town library is well stocked, it’s more of a prowling ground for Mrs. Fitzgerald, the resident grumpy librarian, than a storage for books. There’s a cafe on the first floor for people who want to bury their faces in books or do research for school projects without being glared at for making the tiniest sound. * Hillside Park: one of the town’s many attempts to present itself as a quirky tourist town, the park is a patch of greenery gently squished into an acre of land. There is an elaborate fountain set in a stone-paved square at the centre. * Nova Hotel: yet another tall rectangular building in HH's entirely uninteresting skyline. It actually sees quite a bit of business due to being much cheaper than its competitors in nearby cities. Surroundings * The town is surrounded mostly by a large forest, which is where the Forest Pokemon live. There is a small lake beach an hour's hike out into the woods, but the fact that even HH's relentless tourism bureau hasn't touched it is a testament to its mediocrity. * Speaking as the GM, I'd prefer to keep the exact location of HH in relation to the rest of the world vague; after all, this isn't even necessarily Earth we're talking about. However, in the spirit of write what you know, it is loosely based on the community my high school was in, so thinking of it as alternate fantasy Canada may be helpful.